Floor drain assembly

ABSTRACT

An exemplary embodiment providing one or more improvements includes an assembly which fixes and supports a floor drain at the appropriate position before a concrete floor is poured. The assembly is adjustable for floors of varying thickness. The lower or second end of the drain pipe is protected against contamination by wet concrete by a resilient disk. In addition a cavity on the bottom of the floor concentric with the drain pipe is formed. After the concrete floor has hardened and the form removed the resilient disk is removed exposing a clean uncontaminated drain pipe end for connection to a riser pipe.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable.

THE NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT

Not Applicable.

REFERENCE TO A “SEQUENCE LISTING,” A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAMLISTING APPENDIX

Not Applicable.

BACKGROUND Description of Related Art Including Information DisclosedUnder 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98

Embodiments of the present application meet the long-felt need of adrain support system for use in pouring concrete floors. The supportsystem can be vertically adjusted to accommodate the pouring of concretefloors of various thicknesses, prevents the contamination of the end ofthe drain pipe with concrete residue, prevents concrete contamination ofthe cavity surrounding the end of the drain pipe, and is preassembledand easily used in the sometimes tumultuous and untidy environment of aconcrete floor pour. This system embeds the drain pipe in the concretematrix while protecting the end of the drain pipe. In addition, thesystem provides a cavity which facilitates joining of the drain pipewith a riser pipe.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,423,527 discloses a fabricated floor drain which extendsthrough a floor and includes a impervious membrane surrounding the drainand between two layers of concrete or a layer of gravel and a layer ofconcrete. Weep holes in the drain receive moisture from the membrane.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,099,887 discloses a drain collar for maintaining anannular space in a poured concrete floor surrounding a riser pipe. Thecollar consists of inner and outer sleeves with knock-out websseparating the sleeves and a cap which prevents entry of concrete duringpouring. After the concrete is poured and hardened the cap, innersleeve, and knock-out webs are removed, leaving a riser pipe with a 1inch annular space about the pipe. This space facilitates theinstallation of appliances such as a toilet.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,216,767 discloses a drainage enhancer for double seepagedrains. The enhancer is a donut-like disk comprised of porous bondedaggregate which allows drainage of water through a shower floor intoweep holes in the drain.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,623,971 discloses a drain and cleanout spacer which areplaced to cover a vertically adjustable drain and cleanout port beforeconcrete pouring. The spacers are removed and the heights of the drainand port adjusted after the concrete has hardened.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,013,927 discloses a sleeve for toilet flanges and drainsconsisting of a sleeve surrounding the soil pipe concentric with alarger sleeve and separated from the larger sleeve by three spacers. Anannular ring covers the annular space during the concrete pour. Afterthe concrete has hardened the ring and spacers are removed.

U.S. Pub. Pat. App. No. 2004/0016190 discloses a modular device forpassing cables and pipes through partitions such as a floor. The deviceincludes firestop material which expands when heated and fills thepassage. Transverse bands are manually attached and removed to adjustthe length of the device.

U.S. Pub. Pat. App. No. 2004/0231742 discloses a sleeve which surroundsa riser pipe. Spacers are used to maintain a space between theconcentric riser pipe and sleeve. The spacers are removed after concreteis poured and hardened.

U.S. Pub. Pat. App. No. 2005/0055916 discloses a box-like form assemblyfor a rough-in floor drain line which projects upward from an earthenground location. The interior of the assembly is filled with sandaggregate and a lid placed on the assembly before pouring concrete inorder to protect the drain line from inadvertent contact with concrete.

U.S. Pub. Pat. App. No. 2005/0166315 discloses two systems forsupporting a floor drain before a concrete pour on a wooden form. Aprior art system uses a foam block with a hole to accommodate the bottomof the drain to support the drain before the pour. The height of thefoam block may be altered to accommodate the various depths of thepoured floor. The block and drain are retained in place before andduring the pour by wires which cross the top of the drain and aresecured by nails to the wooden form. The foam block is chiseled awayafter the concrete hardens thereby giving access to the bottom of thedrain.

Another system uses a number of threaded rods to connect the floor drainto a inverted pan-shaped drain support plate which rests on the woodenform. The height of the drain is adjusted using the threaded rods. Aflange about the circumference of the plate rests on and is attached tothe wooden form. A hole in the center of the plate accommodates theconnection pipe extending from the bottom of the drain into the openspace under the drain support plate. A plastic pipe spacer may be usedto prevent penetration of liquid concrete through the space between theplate and connection pipe into the open area under the inverted plate.Such penetration contaminates the end of the connection pipe withconcrete, thereby causing difficulties in connecting the connection pipewith a drain pipe. Rubber or foam sealant also may be used to preventpenetration of concrete into the open space.

U.S. Pub. Pat. App. No. 2007/0056088 discloses a shower drain adapterwhich attaches a bondable waterproof membrane with a shower pan drainsystem.

The foregoing examples of the related art and limitations relatedtherewith are intended to be illustrative and not exclusive. Otherlimitations of the related art will become apparent to those of skill inthe art upon a reading of the specification and a study of the drawings.

BRIEF SUMMARY

The following embodiments and aspects thereof are described andillustrated in conjunction with systems, tool and methods which aremeant to be exemplary and illustrative, not limiting in scope. Invarious embodiments, one or more of the above described problems havebeen reduced or eliminated, while other embodiments are directed toother improvements.

Embodiments include a floor drain assembly for supporting a floor drainand drain pipe during the pouring of a concrete floor on a form.Embodiments comprise a floor drain body, a drain pipe having a first anda second end with the drain pipe attached at the first end to the bottomof the drain body and extending to the form at the second end. Inaddition there are a multiplicity of spacer rods, the spacer rodsattached at a first end to the bottom of the drain body, and a supportplate, the spacer rods attached at a second end to the support plate.The support plate has a hole through the center of the plate throughwhich the drain pipe extends to the form at the second end of the drainpipe. The support plate has legs which extend downward from thecircumference of the support plate to the form, the legs holding theplate above the form, thereby forming a cavity between the bottom of thesupport plate and the form. There is a disk comprised of resilientmaterial, the disk inserted into the cavity between the bottom of thesupport plate and the form, the disk having a hole through the center ofthe disk, the hole through the disk having a diameter slightly less thanthe outside diameter of the drain pipe, and the drain pipe force fittedthrough the hole in the disk at the second end of the drain pipe.

In addition to the exemplary aspects and embodiments described above,further aspects and embodiments will become apparent by reference to thedrawings and by study of the following descriptions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment floor drain assemblysitting on a form prior to the pouring of concrete.

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the embodiment floor drain assemblyof FIG. 1 taken along the line 2-2.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the disk of an embodiment floor drainassembly.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment floor drain assembly 100sitting on a form 10 prior to the pouring of a concrete floor. The drainbody 20 is at the top of the assembly and has provisions 22 for theattachment of a drain strainer (not shown in FIG. 1) at the top of theassembly. A multiplicity of threaded rods 40 are connected to the drainbody 20 at a first end and to the support plate 50 at a second end. Thethreaded rods 40 are secured to the support plate 50 by adjusting nuts42 on both sides of the support plate. Washers (not shown in FIG. 1) maybe interspersed between the adjusting nuts and support plate. Thethreaded rods 40 are attached to the drain body by threaded holes in thedrain body (not visible in FIG. 1) and secured to the drain body by locknuts 44.

A drain pipe 30 is attached at a first end 32 to the drain body andremoves liquids from the drain body at an opening 24 at the lowerportion of the drain body. The second end of the drain pipe is passedthrough a central hole 51 in the support plate 50. The drain pipe alsopasses through a central hole (not visible in FIG. 1) in the disk 60through a force fit in the resilient disk 60. The length of the drainpipe extends from the form 10 to the connection with the drain body.

In the embodiment of FIG. 1 four legs 52 are arrayed about thecircumference of the support plate 50. The legs extend approximatelyperpendicular to the support plate toward the form 10. A flange 54extends away from each leg 52 and each flange has a hole 54 for thepassage of fasteners such as nails used to fasten the assembly 100 tothe form 10. The legs 52 support the assembly 100 and fasten it to theform 10.

A disk 60 fits under the support plate between the legs. A central hole(not visible in FIG. 1) in the disk receives the second end of the drainpipe 30 in a force fit.

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the embodiment floor drain assemblyof FIG. 1 taken along the line 2-2. Visible at the top of the assemblyis the drain body 20 and the threaded connector 22 for a strainer headat the top of the drain body. The spacer rods 40 are attached to thebottom of the drain body and secured in place by lock nuts 44. A drainpipe 30 is secured at a first end 32 to the bottom of the drain body. Inthis embodiment the first end of the drain pipe is threaded andinteracts with corresponding threads on the inner surface at the insideof the opening 24 at the bottom of the drain body. The drain pipeextends from its connection at the first end 32 to the drain body to theform 10 at the bottom of the assembly 100 at the second end 34 of thedrain pipe

At the bottom of the assembly a support plate 50 is connected to thespacer rods 40 through rod holes 58 and adjusting nuts 42 on both sidesof the support plate 50 secure the spacer rods to the support plate.Washers (not visible in FIG. 2) may be interspersed between theadjusting nuts 42 and support plate 50. Legs 52 are distributed aboutthe circumference of the support plate 50 and extend down from thesupport plate. Flanges 54 extend away from the support plateapproximately perpendicular to the legs 50. A fastener hole 56 in eachflange is used to secure the flange to the form 10. In this embodimentnails 58 are used to secure the flanges 54 to the wooden form 10.

The second end 34 of the drain pipe 30 extends through the central hole51 in the support plate 50 and is force fit into the disk centralpassage 62 in the disk 60. The disk is manufactured of a resilientmaterial. Spacer rod holes 64 in the disk 60 are arrayed about thespacer rods 40 and accommodate the portion of the spacer rods 40 andadjusting nuts 42 which extend below the support plate 50.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the disk of an embodiment floor drainassembly. Visible in FIG. 3 is the disk 60, central passage 62, andspacer rod holes 64.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-3 four spacer rods are arrayedequidistant about the drain pipe. In this embodiment there are four legsarrayed about the circumference of the support plate. Other embodimentswill have other numbers of these elements.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-2 the spacer rods are threaded tofacilitate adjustment of the length of the assembly. Other means ofadjusting the length of the spacer rods and fixing the rods to thespacer plate are specifically contemplated, such as unthreaded rodssecured to the spacer plate using clamps. In addition, embodiments inwhich the length of the assembly is not adjustable and the spacer rodsare fixed to the spacer plate such as by welding are specificallycontemplated.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-2 the length of the assembly isadjustable before the assembly is installed by adjusting the position ofthe spacer plate using the adjusting nuts. If necessary, excessivelength of spacer rods may be cut off so the spacer rods do not extendbelow the level of the flanges. Excessive rod length would not allowattachment of the assembly to the form. The length of the assembly fromflange to top of drain body is the same as the thickness of the concretefloor.

The assembly is manufactured by suitable strong materials such as iron,aluminum, or steel. In embodiments the drain body is cast iron thespacer rods and nuts and support plate are steel. The disk ismanufactured of suitable resilient and flexible materials, such asplastic foam, such as polystyrene or polyurethane foam, or rubber.

In some embodiments the disk has a diameter of 10.22 inches andthickness of 1.44 inches. The spacer rod holes are 1.00 inches indiameter and the central passage is 3.56 inches in diameter whichaccommodates a drain pipe of 3.75 inches outside diameter. The supportplate, legs and flanges are of 11 gauge sheet steel. The support plateis 10.25 inches in diameter. The central hole in the support plate is3.75 inches in diameter and the rod holes are 0.406 inches in diameter.In some embodiments the spacer rods are 0.312 inches in diameter and 12inches in length. The drain body is 9 inches in diameter and 4.344inches in length.

In use, enough assemblies for all the floor drains are adjusted inlength to the planned thickness of the concrete floor. The assembliesare located at the appropriate sites on the forms and attached by nailsor screws. Concrete is poured and allowed to harden. The forms areremoved and the disk removed using pliers or other means of grasping thedisks. The result is a cylindrical cavity in the bottom of the floorbelow the the support plate with the second end of the drain pipe in thecenter of the cavity. A riser pipe which will remove the water from thedrain then may be connected to the second end of the drain pipe.

Embodiments are particularly useful in the sometime tumultuousenvironment of commercial concrete floor construction. Embodimentassemblies are firmly attached to the form and resist displacement. Useof embodiments results in drains in which the drain pipe is directlyembedded in the concrete matrix, which provides maximum stability forthe drain pipe. The force fit of the end of the drain pipe in the diskprotects the end of the drain pipe from contamination by bleedwater fromthe unhardened concrete. Embodiments avoid the necessity of sealing theconnection between drain pipe and support plate in order to protect theend of the drain pipe from concrete contamination, as in prior artassemblies.

In addition, the surface of forms often is not smooth but is marred byflaws such as knots, cracks or joins between form panels. These flawsallow penetration by concrete into of the cavity below the support platein prior art assemblies. The concrete penetration fills the cavity andcontaminates the end of the drain pipe, requiring expensive and timeconsuming chiseling away of the hardened concrete contamination.Embodiments of the present application avoid these problems throughprotection of the end of the drain pipe through force fit into the diskand by exclusion of concrete into the cavity by the disk.

While a number of exemplary aspects and embodiments have been discussedabove, those of skill in the art will recognize certain modifications,permutations, additions and subcombinations thereof. It is thereforeintended that the following appended claims and claims hereafterintroduced are interpreted to include all such modifications,permutations, additions and sub-combinations as are within their truespirit and scope.

1. A floor drain assembly for supporting a floor drain and drain pipeduring the pouring of a concrete floor on a form comprising: a floordrain body, a drain pipe having a first and a second end, the drain pipeattached at the first end to the bottom of the drain body and extendingto the form at the second end, a multiplicity of spacer rods, the spacerrods attached at a first end to the bottom of the drain body, a supportplate, the spacer rods attached at a second end to the support plate,the support plate having a hole through the center of the plate throughwhich the drain pipe extends to the form at the second end of the drainpipe, the support plate having legs which extend downward from thecircumference of the support plate to the form, the legs holding theplate above the form, thereby forming a cavity between the bottom of thesupport plate and the form, a disk comprised of resilient material, thedisk inserted into the cavity between the bottom of the support plateand the form, the disk having a hole through the center of the disk, thehole through the center of the disk having a diameter slightly less thanthe outside diameter of the drain pipe, and the drain pipe force fittedthrough the hole in the disk at the second end of the drain pipe.
 2. Theassembly of claim 1 wherein the support rods are threaded and areadjustably attached to the support plate.
 3. The assembly of claim 1wherein the support plate legs have flanges which extend approximatelyperpendicular from the legs.
 4. The assembly of claim 3 wherein theflanges have attachment holes for attachment of the flanges to the form.5. The assembly of claim 1 further comprising holes in the resilientdisk, the holes located under the second ends of the spacer rods.
 6. Theresilient disk of claim 1 wherein the disk is comprised of plastic foam,or rubber.
 7. The resilient disk of claim 1 wherein the disk iscomprised of polystyrene or polyurethane foam.